Sofa bed



Nov. 6, 1928. 1,690,963

7 A. E. ANDERSON ET AL SOFA BED Filed Feb. 17, 1923 5 Sheets-Sheet l \j I J93 are Nov. 6, 1928. 1,690,963

A. E. ANDERSON ET AL SOFA BED Filed Feb.l7, 1925 a sheets sheet 2 s 222 j 5 a Nov. 6, 1928. 7 1,690,963

A. E. ANDERSON ET AL 17, 1923 3 Sheets-SW20 I 3 2 2 1 a 0 o 7 K I 56 7 2&- g J I )7 5 WWHHHM J Patented Nov. e, 1928.

UNITED STATES:

PATENT-- OFFICE.

ALFRED E. ANDERSON AND oHAnLE's- A. ronsnnne, or nooKFoRn, ILLINOIS.

SOF BED.

Application filed Februaiy 17,1323. Serial No. 619.866. 7

This application is a continuation in part of Serial No. 255,387, filed Sept-23, 1918, allowed February 13, 1923.

tum-generally known as sofa beds adapted to be quickly converted from a sofa into. a

bed, and vice versa, and has more particular reference tothat type of sofa bed'ha'ving a pivoted seat connected with a. sectional bed bottom for assisting in moving the latter to a concealed inoperative position within the sofa frame-and-to an extended fiat position overlying the seat by respectively moving the seat to and from, an operative position;

The primary object of 'the pre'sent invention is to provide a generally simplified and improved sofa bed of'this type,'which shall be easily convertible from one position to another and whichsha-ll be so constructed that it may be-produced at {ii-comparatively low cost and will serve efi'ectually and satisfactorily the purposes for which it is designed. In furtherance of these general objects, we have provided a novel means for supporting the sectional bed bottomand for guiding it to and from its several positions; and in this regard, special attention is called to the particular form and arrangement of the guides for guiding they head section of the bedbot-v tom vertically when the bed bottom is either being collapsed 0r straightened out, and also for automatically locking the bed bottom'in its flat or operative position. In the present embodiment of our improvements, these rear guides are preferablv in the form of vertical rods fixed to the rame sides and guides pivoted on the head section of the bed bottom and slidably-embracing the rods. A simple but very eifectual lock is provided by forming an offset in the lower end of-each 'rod, which offset guide will engage to. holdthebed bottom in flat position upon its being moved thereto;

inat'ter. p j v Still another object resides inthe provision of foot restsattached to the seatframe for supporting its extended .end' in inverted position and having upward extensions which receive the overlying bed bottom andserve to support the same in operative position.

Other objects and attendant: advantages will be appreciated as the invention becomes understood by-reference to the'followingde I scription whenconsidered 111' connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which-e This construction and its attendant' advantages will be described more fully here: i

.as'w'ill; be presently mentioned.

- Fig. 1 is a plan view of a sofa bed embody ing our improvements, showing the bed bot-' tom inits extended operative position and This invention relates to household furniwith the back rest removed for the purpose of clarity"; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical sectiona'l view through the sofa. bed taken sub stantially on the line 22 of Fig. 1 Figs. 2

and 2 show shapes of the supporting ends 5, a. similar sectional view showing the 'soia bed in the form of a sofa:

, The frame of our improved sofabedissodesigned that it'ma y' be compactly arranged knocked down condition'for shipment and set 'up quickly and easily by the dealer without the use of special tools. Tlieframe consists preferably of a rectangular box designated generally by character 6 having front and back pieces 7 and 8 respectively, joinedtogether by sides 9. To the sides 9 of this boxlike frame are detachably secured by suitable means, such as bolts and wing nuts 11, sides 12, which may be of any suitable or preferred design. Pivotally attached to the front board 7 of this frame construction is a seat '13 which also may be of any suitable construction, it being preferred that the seat shall'i nelude a rectangular frame having sides 14 suitable forthe' attachmentoflinksorlevers which will be mentionedhereinafter as formingpa-rt of the bed bottom supporting means. When the seatis in the operative position shown in Fig.-- 5, its sides 14 rest on the sides 9 of the main frame structure, and when swungjforward about its pivot to the inverted position shown inFigs. 2 and 4, it is supported at itsv extended, end by legs 15, which in the present instance, are in the form of angle iron bars fixedly secured to the back of the-seat frame. These ,angleiron bars are extended above the se'at '(considering the latter in inverted position) and provide rests 20 which serve to si'ipport the bed bottom in operati-veposition The upper ends of; the rests 20 have asupporti-ng] shoulder 2 0 a short distancebelow and at an angle to the extremity 20. which Inay'sharply abut the end portion asshown in Fig. 2 or be'connected thereto by, an inclined portion 20 Shown in Fig. 2 5

no j

The: bed bottom designated generalljf,by

bed,

character 16 is of sectional construction con sisting preferably of a head section 17 pivotally connected at 18 to a medial section 19and a foot section 21 pivotally connected at 22 to the medial section 19. A suitable foot rail 23 is also employed. This sectional frame supports a wire spring or spring mattress 24, it being understood that the shape, proportions and materials from which the bed, bottom is mane might be varied to suit the size and type of bed being made. In the present instance, a comparatively heavy brace rod 25 is pivotally connectedto and interposed between the forward ends of the head section 17 of the bed bottom for 'preventing the medial portion of the bed bottom from buckling inwardly during usage.

Novel means are now provided for so supporting the bed bottom that it may-bevery quickly and easily moved from a concealed position within the sofa bed to an extended operative position. Such means consist of links or levers 26 pivotally connected at 27 to the sides 9 of the main box frame and pivotally connected at 28 to the head section 17 of the bed bottom about medially of the ends thereof. Forward links or levers 29 are pivotally connected at 31 and. 32 to the sides 14 of the seat frame and to the section 19 of the bed bottom respectively, as shown. During the o eration'of moving the bed bottom to and rom its different positions, the links 29 will'be swung forwardly and backwardly upon and with respect to the sides 14, and for the purpose of holding these links against lateral displacement and for limiting their forward and backward movement to attain certain results, strap iron guides 33 are'attached to the inner sides of the seat sides 14; and provide a guideway defined at its ends by stops 3d and 35. hen the bed bottom is in the flat operative position shown in Fig. 2 the links 29 rest against the stops 34, thus preventing further lowering movement of the bed bottom. It will also be observed that the forward end of the bed bottom is also seated on the upward extensions 20 of the legs 15 and thus held against lateral displacement and supported in operative position in a very substantial manner. With the cf;-

tremity shown by Fig. 2 there 1s a little SE18 play if the bed bottom fits loosely therein,

but with the inclined portions 20", as shown,

in Fig. 2 the bed bottom is wedged therebetween, thus binding the legs and bed bottom more firmly together and supporting the latter more rigidly upon the floor;

Means is now provided for guiding the head end of the head section so that it will travel in a vertical path when the bed bottom is moved to and from its several positions. This means consists of a vertical guide rod 36 rigidly mounted at each side of the sofa In the present instance, these guide rods are inserted at theirupper ends in holes freely about a horizontal pivot. The parts '36 and 38 in addition to serving as guides are also designed to automatically lock the bed bottom in its operative position whenthe bed bottom is moved thereto. For this purposethe lower end of the rods 36 are offset slightly as at 41,.so that when the guides 38 reach their lowermost position they will engage behind the shoulders of the offsets l1 and be prevented from sliding upwardly. This is due to the fact that the weight on the bed bottom at its head end is carried by the parts 38 resting on the brackets 37 and by the links 26, and that any tendency for the medial portion of the bed bottom to buckle downwardly and consequently allow the rear end of the bed bottom to slide upwardly, will be precluded by reason of the lock efiected by'the offset in the guide rods 36. The bed bottom is also held in alignment bythe bed fabric 24, and its usual marginal springs, which aredrawn taut whenthe foot section is pulled manually outwardly and pressed down, in opening the bed. This looking effect is, however, immediately broken whenthe foot sections 21 and 19 of the bed bottom are successively swung upwardly and toward the main frame when commencing to return thebed bottom to'its inoperative position. This initial movement of the foot and medial sections of the bed bottom in swinging them backwardly upon the links 29 will, it is obvious, move the section 17 rearu'ardly and upwardly, thus breaking the locking effect just mentioned, and allowing the guides 38 to slide freely upon the guide rods 36. p i

'In moving the parts from the bed position shown in Fig. 2, to the sofa position shown in Fig. 5, the foot section 21 is swung upwardly and thence the forward end of the section 19 is raised from the rests 20 and at the same time pushed rearward ly so th at the bed botton'i swings on the links 29 about the pivots 31. to the position shown in Fig. 4, in which further movement in this manner is limited by contact of the links 29 against the stops 35. In the meantime, the guides 38 have been automatically released from the locked position mentioned above and the head end of thehead section 17 has been guided upwardly by said guides to the elevated position shown in Fig. 4, the links serving during thismovement to support and maintain the proper relative relation of the sections 17 and 19. The extended end of the seat 13 is now lifted and swung in a clockwise direction ill.)

about its pivot to the operative position zontal position, allowing ample room for the mattress and bedding at the rear of and beneath the seat. From the foregoing it will be noted that the bed bottom in be'ingmoved to and from its several positions is carried entirely by swinging links and the only sliding engagement is that of the guides 38 on the vertical slide rods 36. As a consequence of this construction, the operation of moving the bed bottom to and from its several positions may be performed very quickly and with very little effort as distinguished from some forms of sofa beds having long track ways and guides which impose considerable frictional resistance to the movement of the 7 bed bottom and are quite difficult to operate.

-operator grasps the under edge of the rest 7 with one hand at each end thereof andpushes The back rest 42 instead of being mounted to swing upwardly on one or more pivots as s the common practice, 1s designed to have a vertical sliding movement and to be auto' matically locked in elevated position upon being moved thereto. To this end, we have equipped the back rest with a pail of vertical slide rods 43 having an inclined portion 44, at their upper ends and a lateral offset or bend 45 at their lower ends. These rods are fixed to the back of the back rest at each end thereof and each passed through an aperture ina guide plate 46 securedto the adjacent side 12 of the sofabed. henin normal position, shown in" Fig.6, the back rests on the seat and against the legs 15 and the top edge of the back overlies the "finishingjstrip 4.7 at the under side of the head bar 30. hen it is desired to raise the back rest, the

the back upwardly. During the initial up- 'wa rd movementthe inclined portions 44 of the slides 43 will cause the upper end of the back to move forwardly so as toclea'r the head bar 30, whereupon the bac'k'may be freely raised to its elevated )osition. Upon reaching this position,the 0 set portions or bends 45 will enter the guides 46, and since the weight of the back rest is thrown rearwardly'of these bends 45 the latter will engage in the apertures in the stationary guides anclliold the back rest in elevated position, shown in Fig. 2. To lower the back rest it will be necessary to swing its upper end forwardly, allowing its offset portion to pass throughthe apertures in the stationaryguides and also allowing the slide rods 43 to pass, downwardly to the operative position shown in Fig. 5.

It is believed that the foregoing conveys a clear understanding of our improvements and the objects prefacedabove, and it should be understood that while we have illustrated and described but one working embodiment of our improvement, various changes might be made in the construction and arra-ngen'ient without departing from the spirit and scope I of the invention as expressed in the appended claims: g

e claim: 1. In a sofa bed, the combination with a main frame, of an invertible seat hinged therein, secured to the seat and having portions projecting above it when it is 111-, verted, and a bed bottom 'foldable in the frameandcomprising sections one of which is sup-- ported by and engaged between but not attached to the projecting portions of said legs.

In a sofa bed, the combination with a main frame,'of a seat invertible'at the front thereof, supports projecting upwardly from the seat when it is inverted, and a bed bottom foldable in the frame and comprising pivotally connected parts unattached to the supports but adapted to rest upon and engaged between the supports for holdingthe bed bottom in alined position above the seat.

3. Ina sofa bed, the combination with a main frame, of a seat invertible at the front thereof, legs secured to the outer side of the seat and having portions projecting'above the seat when it is invertechthe bed bottom foldable inthe frame and comprising mea'n's'for connecting one of the bed bottom sections with the underside of the seat'ythe upper ends of the legs when the seat isjinverted being unattached to but adapted to engage the edges of the bed bottom holding it therebetween for steadying it withrespectto the seat. 7

4. In a sofa bed, the combinationwitha main frame, of a sea't'hinged to swing-outwardly therefrom, a foldable bed bottom having links connecting it to the frame and to the seat for unfolding the bed bottom when the seatis inverted, and means extending up ward from the underside of the seat when it is inverted and unattached tobut for engaging the outer edges of the sides of the bed bottom partsfor confining the bed bottom therebet-ween and limiting the relative lateral movement of the bed bottom and the seat.

5. In a sofa bed, a main frame and a seat invertible in front thereof, a foldable bed bottom, legs attached to the outer edge of the seat for supportingit when inverted and having extensions'above theseat in this po sition, the bed. bottom edges engaging the extensions and also being. supported) thereby, but not being'c'onnected thereto, the engaged part-s mutually steadying each other.

a 6. In a sofa bed,a main frame, a seat invertible at: the front thereof, a bed bottom having foldable part-s, legs fixedat the outer side of the'seat when inverted, the legs having extensions above and below the seat, the lower ends resting upon the floor and the upper ends engagingthc bed bottom parts belowv and at the side edges of said parts for supporting and steadying the bed bottom.

7. In a sofa bed, a main frame, a seat invertible at the front thereof, a bed bottom having foldable parts, legs fixed at the outer side of the seat when inverted, the legs having free extensions above the seat, for engaging some of the parts and confining the bed bottom therebetween to steady it.

8. In a sofa bee, the combination of a sofa frame having a back and a seat hinged to the front of the frame and movable on its hinge to an inverted position in front of the frame, a'bed bottom including pivotally connected sections, the rear section occupying an up right position at the back of the frame and and the other section occupying a substantially horizontal position within the bottom of the frame inthe folded condition of the bed bottom, a link disposed below the bed bottom in its operative position and pivoted to the sofa frame and to the rear bed section intermediate the ends thereof, the pivotal con nection between the link and the bet section constituting a swinging fulcrum on which the bed section turns-in moving from its operative position to its folded position, another link disposed below the bed'bottom in its operative position and pivotally connected to the seat and to the other bed section, and means for guiding the rear end of the rear bed section in an upright direction from its operative position to its folded position, said guiding means including a pair ofupright rods having corresponding offsets at the lower ends, and slides carried by the rear bed section and working upon the respective guide rods, the offset portions of the guide rods overhanging the slidcs in the operative; position of the bed bottom.

9. In a sofa bed, the combination of a sofa frame having a back and a seat hinged to the front of the frame and movable on its hinge to an'inverted position in front of the frame, a bed bottom including pivotally connected sections, the rear section-occupying an upright position at the back of the frame and the other section occupying a substantially horizontal position within the bottom of the frame in the folded condition of the frame in the folded condition of the bed bottom, a link disposed below the bed bottom in its operative position and pivoted to the sofa frameand to the rear bed section intermediate the ends thereof, the pivotal connection between the link and the bed section constituting a swinging fulcrum on which the bed section turns in moving from its operative position to its folded position, another link disposed below the bed bottom in its operative position and pivotally connected to theseat and to the other bed section, means for guiding the rear end of the rear bed section in an upright direction from its operative position to its folded position, and stops carried by the seat and dis-' for limiting the rear and forward. movement of the said links when moving the bed. t a-om to operative and inoperative positions respectively, and means for guiding. the rear end of the bed bottom vertically at the rear portion of the frame when the bed bottom is swung on said links to inoperative position.

11; in a sofa bed, the combination of a main frame, an invertible seat hinged thereto, a sectional bed bottom, vertical guides for the rear end of one of the sections, support ing means at the bottom of said guides, two pairs of pivoted swinging links, one pair connected at the sides of the frame to one of the bed sections and the other pair connected in termediate the ends of the adjacent bed section and the underside of the seat, and supporting legs at the rear of the seat for supporting it in an inverted position and extending above the seat when in this position, the pairs of links guiding the movement of the bed sections from behind and below the seat to a horizontal position above the seat when the latter is inverted and sliding the rear of the first named section downwardly against the supports at the bottom of the guides and swinging the outer end of the said adjacent section to engage between the upper ends of the supporting legs. 7 i

12. In a sofa bed, the combination of a main frame, an invertible, seat hinged thereto, a sectional bed bottom, vertical guides for the rear end of one of the sections, supporting. means at'the lower ends of the guides, swinging links connected to the side of the frame and intermediate the ends of one of the sections, other swinging links connected to the underside of the seat and intermediate the ends of the adjacent section, legs at the rear of the seat extending above and below it for supporting the seat in inverted position, the bed sections being movable from behind and below the seat to an alined' position above the seat when it is inverted and vice versa, and the outer movement of the seat causing the rear bed section to sl1de downwardly on the guides and the links guiding the said adjacent section to swing downwardly into engagement with the upper ends of the supporting legs, and means at the lower ends of the guides to prevent accidental upward movement of the rear bed bottom section iii?) 13. In a sofa bed, the combination of a main frame, an invertible seat hinged thereto, a sectional bed bottom, vertical guides for the rear end of one of the sections, supporting means. at the lower ends of the guides, swinging links connected to theside of the frame and intermediate the ends of one of the sections, other swinging links connected to the underslde of the seat and intermediate upper ends of the supporting legs.

14. In a sofa bed, the combination of a frame, an invertible seat pivoted therein, a sectional bed bottom,means for slidably guiding the rear of the rear bed bottom section from and toapositionabovc and behind the seat in a substantially vertical path and swinging the front forwardly and rearwardly, links pivotally connecting thenext bed section intermediate the ends of its sides with the underside of the seat whereby these sec-. .tions assume an intermediate balanced and inclined substantially right angled position when the seat is inverted, and presenting in this position a hand graspable portion by means of which thesections are drawn outwardly into horizontal alinement.

15. In a sofa bed, a frame, a pivoted bed bottom of three different sizedsections, a vertical guide for the rear of the widest section, a link at each end'of the frame pivoted to the end of this section, a seat hinged at the front of the frame, a support for the outer side of the seat when overturned extending also above the seat in this position, links pivoted to the underside of the seat and to each end of the next adjacent bed section, stops in the seat for limiting the, movement of the seat links, the outermostbed section being shortest and forming with the other bed section a J-shaped bed clothes receptacle which is maintained in this same position by the said links in an intermediate position when the seat is overturned, the seat support engaging the outer edges of the second bed section in bed position, and the shortest bed section extending beyond the seat support and being upheld by the second bed section.

ALFRED E. ANDERSON. CHARLES A. FORSBERG. 

